


I Do Care

by draeisbae



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-05 15:54:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4185846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/draeisbae/pseuds/draeisbae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After an argument, Braeden leaves, and it's up to Derek to fix things and bring her home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Do Care

Derek growled to himself as he sped up the car, nothing but empty road ahead of him. It was the perfect time to think about how fucked up his life currently was. Images and words flashed through his mind, Braeden leaving, the way he screamed at her as she packed all her things.

_“This is my_ job _Derek! I’m not going to stop being a mercenary just because my boyfriend doesn’t like guns.. I do something_ good _. I eliminate the bad guys, the enemies. Besides, I don’t exactly have a college degree, this is how I support myself.”_

_“You don’t have to support yourself anymore Braeden. You’re not alone anymore. And it’s not just me that’s uncomfortable with this.” Derek looked down at his feet as he mumbled, “Scott and the rest of the others don’t really think that having a supernatural mercenary is reflecting well on us with other packs.”  
_

_Braeden narrowed her eyes at Derek, slowly stepping closer. “I don’t need you to take care of me Derek! I have never_ needed _anyone, and you will not be the first! I’ve been doing just fine on my own, I didn’t_ need _you before and I don’t_ need _you now.”_

_Derek opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off._

_“And all this about the_ pack _? My job_ _makes you_ uncomfortable _? It makes your little_ pack _uncomfortable? Well guess what Derek? I don’t actually give two shits about your pack! I promised you a long time ago that I would help and protect them when needed, and that’s still true, but I don’t_ care _about them. I’m here for you and no one else. I’m here because you make me happier than anyone else has in a long time, and you do that just as you are. Do I not make you happy anymore?” At this point, tears were shining in the corners of Braeden’s eyes. “You knew I was a mercenary before we started whatever this is, before you felt whatever you feel for me now. Or is that all gone? Is the little mercenary not enough for you anymore?”  
_

God, did she really think that? Did she really think that she wasn’t everything to him? Braeden had once told him that she felt like a project to him. Some broken toy that he wanted to fix up and turn into the perfect pack member. She was half right. He did want her to be a pack member; after all, pack was all he had now. But he didn’t need her to change for that, she wasn’t broken. Sure, she was a little rough around the edges, but not much else could be expected from someone who’d seen and experienced all the things that Braeden had; Derek was a little ‘rough’ too, as was to be expected from someone who’d killed one girlfriend, and almost killed by two others.

He couldn’t lose her though. He’d already lost too much. Paige. His family. And as sick as it was, he’d lost Kate and Jennifer, or at the very least, the feelings of love and joy they instilled in him when he thought them to be nothing more than good people who cared about him.

_“Don’t make me choose between you and my pack Braeden!”_

_“I’m not making you choose between anything! I’m giving you a chance Derek. A chance to accept me as I am, a supernatural mercenary, or lose me. Forever.”_

_Derek looked down at his feet, leaning forward against the metal table in the loft._

_“What’s it gonna be Derek?”_

_The man stayed silent._

_Braeden schooled her face when her chin quivered slightly. “I see. Well, I’ll pack my things and be gone within an hour.” She walked around the room and took all her clothes from the wardrobe and dresser drawers. She threw them in a bag and then went about putting all her weapons in their cases. 47 minutes later Braeden was done and walking towards the door._

_“I hope you find the perfect little pack bitch,” she practically snarled._

_Derek tried to stay calm, but he couldn’t help digging the knife in a little deeper. “Anyone’s better than another killer!”_

Derekpulled up to a big house. He pulled out his phone to make sure the address was correct, and furrowed his brow in confusion when he saw that it was, it wasn’t at all like what Braeden had described. Just as he began walking up to the rickety front porch, which he eyed warily, the screen door swung open and out walked a small elderly lady.

“And who might you be young man? You aren’t from ‘round here. Much too white to live in this town.”

“Um, no. I-I’m from Beacon Hills? I’m here looking for Braeden.”

“Beacon Hills?” The little lady rose her brows in thought before shrugging. “Eh, ain’t ever heard of it. You said you’re lookin’ for Braeden?”

“Yes ma'am.”

The lady turned to point at the door. “Well she’s upstairs in her old room. Go in straight ahead, first right up the staircase and then second door on your left in the little hall there.”

Derek nodded and made his way inside, stopping just inside the door. “Thank you Mrs.-?

“Meyers. Call me Ms. Meyers honey.”

“Thank you Ms. Meyers.”

Derek entered the house and followed the directions that Ms. Meyers, suddenly thankful for his intense agility when he felt a weakness on the staircase. He walked up to the door he’d been directed to and found exactly what he was looking for. Braeden was standing between a bed and a small dresser, evidently unpacking all of her belongings. He tapped his knuckles on the door to signal his presence.

“I’m almost done Ms. Meyers. I just have to hang up these shirts, and then I’ll be right down to help with those cookies you mentioned.”

Derek cleared his throat this time. It clearly sounded nothing like the old lady because the woman before him snapped her head up to look at him. She visibly tightened her jaw when she saw who had arrived.

“What are you doing here? How did you even find me?”

“A while back you gave me the address, before you left for a job,” Derek explained. He smiled nervously. “I guess you didn’t think I’d ever actually use it.”

“What are you doing here Derek?”

Derek sighed, Right to the point. “I came to talk. We both said things we didn’t mean last month. At least I hope you didn’t mean those things.” he mumbled.

Braeden let out a sigh of her own as she sat down on the bed. “I didn’t mean what I said. At least not all of it. I was just angry.”

“I didn’t either. You’re not a killer. Not like _they_ were.“

“And I do need you. And I do care about the pack, even if it’s not returned.”

The man sat down next to her and grabbed Braeden’s hand, holding it in his own. “They do care. We talked, after you left. They agreed that having you in the pack only makes us stronger, and less vulnerable. No other pack will try to cross Scott if we have someone that can kill them 10 different ways in our pack. Even if he is 17.”

“It’s actually 12.”

Derek furrowed his brow in confusion. “What?”

“I can kill 12 different ways,” Braeden explained, “so don’t piss me off again,” she warned jokingly.

Derek laughed at her words. “Deal.” He leaned over and kissed her head. “Now will you come home? Ms. Meyers kind of scares me.”

“That little old lady?! She practically adopted my mom when my grandparents passed away. I hadn’t seen her since my parents were killed.”

Derek smiled grimly at the mention of Braeden’s parents, knowing it wasn’t a subject his girlfriend like to touch upon. “So..is that a yes?” he asked with a sly smile.

Braeden laughed slightly and nodded her head. “That’s a yes.” She leaned up to kiss him. “Help me pack up again?”

It was Derek’s turn to nod as he stood up and set Braeden’s suitcase on the bed where he was just sitting. “I do care. About you. A lot. You know that right?”

Braeden pursed her lips, noting the serious tone in Derek’s words. “I do now. And I care about you too, and I love you. But I’m not used to that being reciprocated.”

Derek turned away from where he was re-packing Braeden’s clothes and pulled her in close by the waist. “Get used to it. Because it’s not gonna end anytime soon.”

The woman nodded, smiling, and leaned up to kiss the man before her.

And Derek knew they would be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think:) thoughts and requests welcome.


End file.
